SOME CALZONE FOR DEREK

YOUR HEAD A SPLODE

OK, I refuse to talk about the rumours. Life's just too goddamn short.

But Will Carroll has an interesting look at how it would effect the Red Sox, White Sox, Rangers, and Angels in 2004 using VORP as predicted by PETCO. (Red Sox and Angels would have a net gain, White Sox and Rangers net loss.)

I had forgotten the Angels were to be part of the deal. Could you imagine a lineup of Garciaparra, Guerrero, and Garrett? Sure, they only had 133 BB between the three of them last year (granted, Guerrero missed about 1/3 of the season), but you can't tell me that isn't a freaking scary middle of the order. (It's like Bill Stoneman read Moneyball and decided he was going to really piss Billy Beane off.)

Earlier in the week, Ken at Barry Zito Forever wrote a hilarious post about the scary prospect of having fellow George Bell disciples Garrett and Guerrero back-to-back in the Anaheim lineup. How do you pitch around guys that hit anything thrown remotely near them? About Guerrero in particular, Ken writes:

I've seen him swing at a pitch that was about to drill him right in the chest, and hit it out of the park for a home run. Yikes! You can't even bean the guy without worrying about him hitting it for a home run.

SOUNDS ABOUT RIGHT

Halladay and the Jays apparently agreed on 4yrs, $42M.

I'm usually leary of 3 years+ long-term contracts, but I think Halladay's worth the extra risk for the extra year. Examining Halladay's efficiency despite his large innings pitched back in September, I concluded, "At 26 years old, if any pitcher might be worth the risk of a four year plus contract, this might be it."

I'm also usually leary of back-loaded contracts, but the reported $12.5M he'll be paid the last two years isn't so outrageous that it'll hinder the budget conscious Jays to make a serious playoff push once the New Haven kids are ready for the big leagues.